Identification of Important Herbs for Anti-fever Treatment: An Ethnobotanical Study of Sojas Rud, Northwest Iran

Abstract

Introduction: Fever is a common symptom in several diseases. Medicinal plants have a long history in dealing with diseases. Hence, the objective of this ethnobotanical study was to identify herbs used for the management of fever in Sojas Rud district in Khodabandeh County, Zanjan province, Northwest Iran. Methods: This ethnobotanical study was carried out in Sojas Rud district in Khodabandeh County, Zanjan province, Northwest Iran. Collection of ethnobotanical information as done through interviews and questionnaires among 22 traditional healers. Demographic information was also collected. The data were analyzed by Excel. Results: Our findings revealed that 10 medicinal herbs including Anthemis nobilis L., Centaurea depressa L., Crataegus monogyna, Descurainia Sophia L., Elaeagnus angustifolia L, Gundelia tourneforti L., Nasturtium officinalis, Orchis latifolia L., Plantago lanceolata L., and Salix spp. from 7 families had a considerable effect in the management of fever. We have also observed that the medicinal herbs in Asteraceae, Rosaceae, Brassicaceae, Elaeagnaceae, Orchidaceae, Plantaginaceae, and Saliaceae families had the effect on controlling fever. Furthermore, our results demonstrated that the flower, stem, fruit, seed, leaf, aerial parts, tuber, root, and bark of these plants were the effective parts, respectively. In addition, most forms of preparation of these plants were decoction, fresh, infusion, cooked, and syrup, respectively. Conclusion: The presented study revealed the remarkable effect of some new medicinal plants against fever. Therefore, further studies in the field of investigating the effects of medicinal plants on fever with the approach of identifying the role of the phytochemical constituents of these plants and their effective mechanisms on fever treatment can be a way forward.

Keywords: Ethnobotany, Medicinal plants, Fever, Antipyretic agents